Moon Township, Pa.– The Robert Morris University women's ice hockey team is slated to play a program-record 34 regular-season games, including 20 matchups coming against College Hockey America (CHA) opponents in the 2013-2014 season.
Coming off a season in which the Colonials advanced to the semi-finals of the CHA tournament, the Colonials beefed up their non-conference schedule to feature matchups against Boston University, Maine, Ohio State, Quinnipiac and St. Lawrence. Robert Morris will meet its five CHA rivals four times each during the season, and all six squads will participate in the 2014 CHA Tournament, which will be hosted by the league's regular-season champion beginning in late February.
Under the direction of third year Head Coach Paul Colontino, the Colonials will open a season that includes a program-record 11 straight weekend games on Sunday, Sept. 29 when they play their only exhibition match against the Toronto Aeros of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). RMU opens up regular-season action against Renssealer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) on Friday, Oct. 4 and Saturday, Oct. 5 at the 84 Lumber Arena; the series will start a stretch of eight-straight non-conference games.
The Colonials will hit the road for the first time in the season as they take on Bemidji State (Oct. 11 and 12). The Colonials look to improve their record against a squad that was only able to capture six wins last year. The Colonials will then welcome the Boston University Terriers (Oct. 18 and 19) and the Vermont University Catamounts (Oct. 25 and 26) to the confines of 84 Lumber Arena to close out their early non-conference schedule.
The Colonials will open up CHA play against Penn State University on Thursday, Oct. 31 and Friday, Nov. 1 at the Nittany Lions' new Pegula Ice Arena. The Colonials will look to continue their unbeaten streak against PSU after winning all four matchups last year, the Nittany Lions' inaugural season.
RMU will look for revenge against CHA foe Mercyhurst after the Colonials 2012-2013 season ended on the Lakers' home ice last March. The Colonials dominated the regular-season matchup against the nationally-ranked Lakers a year ago, winning three of four games before falling to the Lakers in the semi-finals of the CHA playoffs. The Colonials will conclude their four-game homestand with a series the following weekend against the Lindenwood Lions (Nov. 15 and 16). The Colonials last faced the Lions in last year's first round of the CHA playoffs. The Colonials won the series 2-0 after winning the first game in a triple overtime thriller.
After a two game series in Syracuse (Nov. 22 and 23) the Colonials will play single games against Ohio State (Nov. 27) and Maine (Nov. 29) over the Thanksgiving break. The matchup against the Buckeyes will mark the first meeting between the Colonials and their former head coach, Nate Handrahan, now the head coach at Ohio State.
The Colonials will wrap up play in 2013 after hosting Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) for a two game series on Friday, Dec. 6 and Saturday Dec. 7. The Colonials resume play in 2014 with a home series against St. Lawrence. RMU then starts their longest road trip of the season, with two-game series against Quinnipiac (Jan. 17 and 18), Mercyhurst (Jan. 24 and 25) and Lindenwood (Jan. 31 and Feb. 1). The Colonials return home for a two game series against Syracuse (Feb. 7 and 8) before their last road trip of the season to take on RIT (Feb. 14 and 15). The Colonials finish the regular season at home against Penn State (Feb. 21 and 22).
With 77 points (38-39-77) in two seasons as a Colonial, junior forward Rebecca Vint (Caledon, Ontario / Brampton Jr. Thunder) looks to lead the 2013-2014 squad offensively. Seniors Thea Imbrogno (Etobicoke, Ontario / Mississauga Jr. Chiefs), Anneline Lauziere (St. Thomas, Ontario / London Jr. Devilettes) and Kristen Richards (Toronto, Ontario / Niagara University) will add experience and leadership to the lineup. The Colonials look to return to improve upon their 2013 fourth place CHA finish and recapture their 2012 form, the season in which they won their first CHA championship.
